I love my Nook HD, I upgraded from one of the original Nooks. I really like being able to adjust the text size and the back light enables me to read in bed without turning on a light. It turns out - the BEST thing about having an E-reader vs. a 'regular' book - I can put it on the shelf on the treadmill or eliptical and it makes the exercise time fly! If I only used it there it would be worth it!! I can make the brightness and print the size I need, no glasses, nothing to hold, just touch the screen to turn the page.
I prefer to do my book shopping and purchasing on my laptop and downloading the books to my Nook when I need a new book to read. You can also download the Nook application on to your laptop. I always down load the books on 'Free Book Friday' and they seem to have lots of specials where they have half priced books. I also try to avoid downloading books right after they are released. I have several on my wish list and the price on several of them have dropped since I added them to the list.